Saturday, February 28, 2009

Bike shopping sucks. There are countless options, not to mention everything costs a fortune. There's the dilemma of whether or not to buy online and save money, or support the local shop and spend more. Also, being so new to this sport obviously doesn't help either. I'm starting to understand why things cost what they do, and already I can see how cyclists justify their much loved purchases. I'm starting to realize that no matter how good of a bike I get, it won't be good enough. If you buy the $1000 bike, you'll soon crave the $2000 bike, just like if you buy the $500 bike (if such a thing existed) you'll very quickly wish you were sporting the $1000 ride. There are countless brands and countless pros and cons. Doing all of my research has turned into a full time job. Luckily I think there is a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm narrowing my search.

At this point, I'm debating between an online steal, and a local bike shop entry level bike. If you follow the links you'll see my dilemma. The online bike is more of an off brand frame but with a higher level of name brand Shimano components, while the bike shop bike is a Felt, (quality name brand) frame with a lower level of name brand Shimano components. The online bike is $130 cheaper plus no sales tax and that includes shipping, but it comes in a box and needs some final assembly done. The shop bike is more expensive and has a lesser component group but comes from a local shop fully assembled and tuned and I'm sure they'll stand behind it with great service if necessary. Like I said, agony. If you care to weigh in let me know, otherwise hopefully I can make a decision on my own and pull the trigger on this deal soon. It's supposed to be near sixty degrees this weekend so the new snow won't last long and I need to be out on the road.